Crusade to the stars - New author
by Dippygamer64
Summary: So I'm taking over Crusade to the stars for a friend of mine, TheFlyboy44. Here's what he got done: /s/8375711/1/Crusade-To-The-Stars He did a great job, so I hope I can do just as great. When he left off, Bucky and the gang brought the crusaders to help with the S.P.A.C.E. war against the toads. Will the Crusaders end up being a big help, or just a burden?
1. Introductions

Note from new author:

Hey guys, Dippygamer here!

So I'm starting, or rather, taking over a new story that I promised a friend of mine I would finish for him. His name is TheFlyboy44 and I'm gonna be taking over his story called _Crusade to the Stars_. So I hope you guys like my part of the story, here is a link to his first three parts: s/8375711/1/Crusade-To-The-Stars

Enjoy!


	2. Chapter 3

Crusade to the stars - Chapter 3

**Okay, so I guess I should just start by saying hello, and welcome to the story. Sorry I haven't written in a while, I have a lot of future ideas, and I have NO IDEA how I missed this. So any way, if you want to read the first few chapters, visit here: s/8375711/1/Crusade-To-The-Stars other than that, enjoy!**

As the Righteous Indignation landed on the surface of Genus, the crusaders felt a bit nauseated at what might be the outcome of this situation. Bruiser unbuckled him and Sweetie Belle as Deadeye and Scootaloo got out of the gunner's chair. When they got outside, the girls were fascinated by the sights. "Whoa! This place is bigger than Manehatten and Canterlot put together!" Applebloom said with excitement. Sweetie belle and Scootaloo shared features of enthusiasm alongside Applebloom, but deep inside, there was a level of nervousness deep inside each of the three. "Come on you three, we have a meeting with United Animals council to get to." Bucky chuckled as he watched the crusaders look around with their eyes filled of curiosity. As they made their way to the main hall, the girls noticed that most of the residents would either turn their heads to them, look at them with their eyes only, or just simply stop in their tracks to stare at the strange little fillies. This made the girls very uncomfortable and Bucky very upset and protective.

As they got to the doors of the main room, Bucky turned to the girls, "Here we are, you three ready?" The girls looked at each other for a second until Applebloom spoke, "I guess we're as ready as we'll ever be." She smiled, hiding the fear inside. "Great!" Bucky said, and with that he opened the doors to the councils all arguing about… something. Then the man who looked like a pig, finally looked up, "Ah, Bucky O'Hare." He said standing up, "It's about time you got here." The man straightened his tie and leaned on the table. "Grand council, as my message implied, I have brought three unique citizens with me from a world called Equesria. They are here to convince you to extend the resistance to their home world so you will let them fight with us." Bucky explained. 'Wow, he must really believe in us.' Applebloom thought. 'I'll do him proud.' She then stuck up her chest, ready to give her speech. But when the councilman looked behind Bucky, he saw the girls, and frowned. "You mean those children behind you?" He walked around the table and met Bucky in the middle of the room, "We are in the middle of a galactic war and you come to us with three ponies, who are children none the less!" He yelled, making the girls cringe in fear. That's when the other council members started to join in the argument. "You are simply wasting our time!" One shouted. "How could little horses help destroy the Toad empire?" Another asked loudly. "You should really focus on freeing slaves mister O'Hare!" A third added.

The crusaders felt truly bad about letting their new friends down as they watched the argument go on. But Applebloom, being the stubborn little filly she always was, would not just stand by while that happened. With a stern look on her face, she stepped forward until she was about a foot away from Bucky's side. "Ahem. Mister Councilman? I'd like to speak with you." She said, but like most of the adults she's been with, he didn't listen or even hear her. "Hello?" she tried again, but the results weren't different. Finally, she did what any child would do to get attention, and screamed at the top of her lungs. Although it made everybody in the room flinch and cover their ears, it wasn't high pitched enough to shatter the windows nor was it loud enough for anyone outside of the room to hear. When she had everyone's attention, she cleared her throat and stared directly at the councilman. "Mr. Councilman, I understand how you might think that me and ma' friends might be too young to convince you, but just hear me out. Our home planet is populated by peace-loving folks who, when threatened, can do incredible feats when working together…" As Applebloom spoke, an armada of weird ships hovered just outside the Genus defense system.

Back in Equestria, Princess Luna was taking a walk in the garden. As lovely as the flowers or trees were, her thoughts were locked on the Crusaders being nowhere to be found. She started to remember the times with them, like how they brought out the Ponyville flag to the Equestria games and how she'd be there to help with their nightmares. She looked up at the moon, the one where she was banished for a thousand years. She felt that each of the crusaders had something she could relate to, especially with their elder sisters and idles. She sighed. "Luna?" a voice cooed from behind her. She looked and saw her own sister, Celestia. "Is something wrong?" Luna tried to fake a smile, "Oh, no sister. I'm fine." But Celestia knew something was wrong, "You're thinking about those three fillies aren't you?"" Luna turned her head back around and lowered it to level of her back. "I just, wish I could've helped them more than I did." She sighed. Celestia, stood close to her and rested a hoof on Luna's shoulder. "I know how you feel my sister, I too wish I have spent more time with the little fillies. But the only thing we can do right now is be there for Twilight and her friends." She said calmly. Luna looked up at her sister "I hope they'll be okay." She worried. Celestia smiled, "I'm sure they'll be fine." The two of them hugged and continued to stare at the night sky. Meanwhile in Ponyville, Rarity, Applejack and Rainbow Dash were in the town hall, sitting on the gazebo's steps. They were tired, but refused to sleep until their sisters were found. Rainbow sighed out of the blue, causing Rarity to speak up. "Rainbow Dash, I appreciate you're trying to help, but groaning about it won't do any good." Rarity stated. "I can't help it!" Rainbow groaned, "I can't help but feel like this is all my fault." Applejack looked at her, "Ah know how ya feel sugar cube, ah can't help but blame myself as well. But nothin's gonna change unless we do something about it." Rarity then scratched her chin, "By the way rainbow, I've been wondering why Scootaloo looks to you like a sister. After all, you two aren't related, are you?" she asked. Rainbow looked at them, "Well, no, but just because we're not technically sisters doesn't mean I can't treat her like one. I always wondered what it was like to have a sister, and then she asked me to be her role model so, how could I turn her down?" Dashie explained. "Aw, that's so sweet of you." Applejack commented, "No wonder you two were so close." Rainbow smile a bit then looked at the stars, "And no matter what, I'm gonna get her back!"

"…In conclusion," Applebloom wrapped up. She had been explaining what the citizens of Equestria could do all on her own, without anyone cutting in. Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo were shocked at what their friend was doing, while Bucky was simply proud of the courage she had found. "The Equestrian citizens would be most helpful in this war against the Toad Empire." As she finished, the council men were simply awestruck at how a filly could have such a voice. "Hm, well I must say, your description of your home world is definitely intriguing…" the head council man said scratching his chin. Applebloom kept a face on confidence on while he thought. "Very well," he said, "I shall contact the ruler of Equestria and ask for their support." Applebloom relaxed and sighed slightly. "Thank you Council man." Bucky said, proud of Applebloom. The head council man nodded, "Now go back to your duties Mr. O'Hare." And with that, Bucky, his team, and the girls left the room.

After the doors closed, Applebloom sighed heavily, "Phew, now _that_ was close." She said. "But you still hung in there. I'm proud of you Applebloom." Bucky reassured her. "Yeah, you were great." Scootaloo complimented. "I could _never_ have done something like that!" Sweetie belle added. As they walked, Deadeye suddenly stopped, "Um, hey you three," he started as he caught up to the fillies, "What's that thing you said ponies like you get about their talent?" he asked. Applebloom looked at him, "What? You mean a cutie mark?" "Yeah, that's it." He said. "Why do you ask?" Scootaloo questioned. Deadeye smirked, "I think you should look for yourselves." The girls each raised an eyebrow in confusion, until Applebloom realized what he meant and turned to look at her flank. There, right before her eyes, was a picture of a metal-blue scroll and a dark grey gear in front, she had finally got her cutie mark. "MAH CUTIE MARK!" She exclaimed, her eyes gleaming with excitement, "I finally got it!" "No way!" Scootaloo said in shock and excitement. "Lemme see! Lemme see! Lemme see!" Sweetie Belle squeaked. The three fillies stared in awe at the little picture. All of Applebloom's patience and persistence has finally paid off. Bucky and the others smiled, "Congratulations Applebloom," he said kneeling down and rubbing the little filly's head, "You certainly deserve it."

Applebloom smiled, "Thanks, I couldn't have done it without your help!" This was the best day of her life. But just when they were getting back to walking outside, something big and powerful shook the ground, almost making some of the team fall over. "W-w-w-what was that?" Sweetie Belle stuttered, all shaken up. "I don't know," Jenny replied, "But I don't like it." The group ran outside and viewed one of the most horrific scenes any of them have ever witnessed. Outside that very door was an invasion of thousands upon thousands of toads. Bucky was astonished, 'How did they get passed the defense mechanism?' He thought. "Are… Are those the…" Scootaloo hesitated. "It's the toads!" Dead-eye growled. "But, how did they-" Bruiser asked dumbfounded. But he was interrupted by a furious Bucky O'Hare. "Doesn't matter. What matters now is that we send these slime balls back to where they came from!" he ordered. And with that, the battle began. This day was surely changing the course of the crusaders' lives


	3. Chapter 4

Crusade to the stars - Chapter 4

**Hey guys, I'm back! So we left off when Genus was being attacked by the toads. Komplex will be talking in bold since he's the main villain… plus I felt like it. *Edit* Sorry about the little differences, I just wanted to change a few things.**

On board the Toad mother ship, the air marshal was distracting himself with toad TV. The screen suddenly changed in to evil toad lord, Komplex. **"Air Marshal!" **He bellowed. The Air Marshal fell backwards at the sudden act. "K-K-Komplex!" he stuttered, getting back on his feet. "W-What brings you here?" **"I am just here to make sure your plan doesn't fail like always!" **Komplex replied harshly. "Oh, don't worry about that. Toadborg was able to sneak past the defense mechanism and disabled it long enough for a few toad ships to land on the surface." Air Marshal replied, slowly gaining back confidence. "In a matter of seconds, he'll shut the defenses down for good, and Genus will belong to the toads!" He began to laugh, but Komplex gave him a glare, **"Hm, you better not fail this time, Air Marshal! If you do, I'll melt you along your metals and your entire ship!" **And with that, he disappeared from the screen.

Bucky took out his gun and started to fire away at the toads. Deadeye joined him and Bruiser began to terrify and crush the intruders. Blinky and Jenny got the crusaders to the ship safely, "Humble android asks first mate what we should do!" Blinky panicked. "I'm not sure, but we need to keep the girls safe." Jenny replied. Applebloom couldn't believe what was happening. Just a minute ago she had gotten her cutie mark, now her and her friends' lives were at stake. Just then a toad opened the ship's door and entered, pointing his gun at the five inside. Out of instinct, Apple bloom swiveled her hooves around and bucked him in the chest. The toad dropped his gun and flew his head into the wall. He dropped to the floor and passed out. The ship was quiet until Jenny spoke up, "That's the spirit Applebloom!" she said picking up the toad's gun. Applebloom stared at her in confusion. "We'll bring the fight to them!" Jenny leapt out of the ship and started firing at the toads. Applebloom understood and ran outside to help, and although Sweetie Bell did so too, she just stayed next to Jenny while Applebloom bucked and tripped some toads. But poor Scootaloo stayed next to Blinky hiding next to the ship. "Oh, but what help could I do?" she said, doubting herself.

That's when Blinky got an idea, "Humble android Blinky might have the answer." He ran in the ship and ran back out with a box in his arms, "While Deadeye was showing you how to use the ship's gun, Blinky was busy creating these for little filly." He opened the box and revealed a pair of metallic blue wings and an ear piece. "Put these on and your aerial skills will increase immensely." Scootaloo was hesitant at first, but after seeing how much everyone else was doing, she nodded, "Okay. Strap them on." She stated, determined to help. Blinky fit the metallic wings on to Scootaloo's tiny orange ones. After he did that, he clipped the ear peace on her right ear. When he was done, he stepped back, "Now just do what you would normally do in order to fly." He explained. Scootaloo hopes fell and she dropped her head, "But… I can't fly… I never knew how…" She somewhat mumbled. Her wings were too small for her to fly, and she just assumed he meant the new wings would fly on their own. "But if you don't try, you'll never find out what would happen." Blinky encouraged her. Scootaloo stared back at the wings and sighed, "Alright, I'll give it a shot." She turned around and spotted a cloud. Spreading her "new wings", she crouched down to the ground, closed her eyes, and…

*WHOOSH*

As soon as she brought her wings down, they rocketed her towards the sky. She was so shocked, she couldn't respond until she opened her eyes and saw how he she had gotten. She flapped her wings to slow her down and to her surprise, she did! She looked at her height and then to her wings, still flapping normally and functioning properly. She smiled, "Sweet!" she cheered. She then dove down to the earth and saw the entire battle field. She hovered in the air for a while, thinking of what to do until she saw a cloud to her right. An idea sparked in her mind and she dashed, collecting every cloud she flew past. When she was finished, she ended up with a giant grey cloud. "Now let's see," she thought out loud, "The pressure point to make a cloud strike in the sky should be right…" she looked around the cloud's surface until she found a slight indent near the top. "… There!" she then stomped her hooves on that exact point, causing the cloud to create energy within the clouds.

Down below, Sweetie Belle and the team were being surrounded by toads. Suddenly a loud rumble was heard throughout the city. Then, as the toads were closing in on the team, a strike of lightning struck the ground and the toads started to panic. They dropped their weapons and ran back to their ships in terror as the sky continued to flash with electricity. After all the toads ran off, the team looked up at a strange cloud above them, and they saw a familiar orange face. "Ha ha! Well ain't that a sight for sore eyes!" Deadeye chucked, "Looks like Scootaloo finally got her wings!" Scootaloo smiled and then flew into the cloud, breaking it up from the inside. After she came out, the cloud busted into smaller white clouds. She flew down to the ground and smiled, but was interrupted when a few of the toads came back, angrier than ever. Scootaloo grinned at Deadeye, who grinned back, and then dashed into the toad horde. Unknown to her, a flash emanated on her flank and a mysterious image appeared.

As Sweetie Belle watched in awe as her friend tore through the toads, she suddenly felt a flow of energy coursing through her head, causing a minor headache. After she rubbed her head for a few seconds, she looked behind her to see a strange yellow and purple robot heading into a warehouse. She turned to Jenny, "Hey Jenny?" the cat looked at her, "What's that?" Jenny followed where Sweetie Belle was pointing to find the robot entering the building. Jenny gasped, "Toadborg!" "Who?" Sweetie Belle asked. "Stay here, I'll take care of him." And with that, Jenny ran after Toadborg. But Sweetie Belle, who was always very curious and willing to help, decided to secretly follow. She stopped at the entrance, staying unnoticed as she watched the scene play before her.

"Surrender Toad!" Jenny shouted. Toadborg turned around, "Hmhmhm, That's _Toadborg_ to you, you pesky mammal!" he chuckled. Sweetie Belle slowly came inside and hid behind a stack of cargo boxes. She snuck a look at Toadborg, a shiver ran up her spine as she figured he was in charge of the invasion. "So what are you up to, 'Toadborg'?" Jenny asked sarcastically. "Well, since you won't be leaving alive," Sweetie belle got scared for Jenny at that comment, "I'm going to shut down the defense fields, afterwards, the toads will finally have control over Genus!" Sweetie Belle gasped, almost giving away her position if it weren't for Jenny saying, "I don't think so!" The gem on her forehead glowed brightly, and her hands directed a magic blast straight for the cyborg. Sweetie Belle gasped, sure she has seen magic before, she was a unicorn after all, but she's never seen things like this before. Jenny continued to blast Toadborg, but it did little to no effect on him. In fact, he shot his own blast right back at her, knocking her off her feet and making her go unconscious.

Sweetie Belle gasped, "Jenny!" She shouted, running to the woman's side. Toadborg saw the little filly and smirked on the inside. "Well, well, well. What do we have here?" He mocked. Sweetie Belle directed her attention to the towering robot, and snarled, "You're gonna pay for that you… You monster!" Toadborg chuckled, "Those are some mean words from such a small child. How could you possibly do anything to someone like me?" He mocked. Sweetie Belle felt her anger start to build up in her veins. "You are just a weak, pathetic, child. You probably can't do anything but mess things up, am I right?" Her anger built up, tears forcing themselves out of her eyes. Just then, her horn started to spark with a light green aura as Toadborg continued, "You have got to the most useless being I have ever-" he was suddenly interrupted by an infuriated filly. "I! AM NOT! WORTHLESS!" She shouted, her eyes flung open to reveal pure white. Just then, her horn blasted a large beam of energy, immobilizing Toadborg and making it impossible for him to do anything.

Jenny woke up to a strange energy. She sat up to see Sweetie Belle blasting Toadborg with some kind of green beam. Jenny stood up, astonished at the little filly's power. But then the robot started to fire back, just barely missing the angry filly. Jenny took action and joined her own blast of magic with Sweetie's. But Toadborg didn't back down. He continued to fire, and one of his blasts actually managed to hit the little filly. "Sweetie Belle!" Jenny cried, running to the kid's side. Her magic was nearly drained and Jenny could tell her entire body hurt. But just as Toadborg was about to blast Jenny as well, Sweetie painfully stood up and her eyes glowed once again. But instead of a beam of magic, her horn created some sort of ribbon which wrapped itself around the cyborg. Once he was fully enveloped in green magic, Sweetie used all that was left of her magic to flash him out of the building. Jenny didn't know what she did exactly, but she did have the time to think because Sweetie Belle passed out soon after the cyborg was gone. Jenny carefully picked up the little filly and carried her outside, hopeful that the kid didn't take too much damage. Just as she ran out of the building, a bright yet unnoticed flash appeared on Sweetie Belle's flank.

Meanwhile, just outside of the Genus defense systems, the Air marshal was boasting about his new "victory". "I bet Komplex will give me so many medals, I'll need an entirely new suit to fit them all!" he exaggerated. Suddenly, Toadborg flashed right in front of the mother ship's main window. "Air Marshal, sir! It's Toadborg! And he's in bad condition!" One of the pilots panicked. "W-w-what?!" Air Marshal stuttered. Just then, the Genus defense systems all pointed their blasters at the mother ship. Air Marshal grabbed the mic to the communicators, "Retreat! All toad warriors retreat!" he shouted. He narrowly escaped the blasts, but he wasn't safe from what Komplex had in store when he found out.

Bucky watched in great pride as the toads all ran back to their ships and flew off in a hurry. Genus was going to need some work, but in due time, it would be just the way it was. Just then he heard the sound of someone running. He turned around to see Jenny with a knocked out and beaten Sweetie Belle in her arms. "Oh no." he said, concerned about the small child. He met Jenny halfway and looked over the poor filly, "What happened to her?" he asked. "It's a long story," Jenny explained, "but right now, Sweetie need our help." Bucky nodded, "Alright, let's get her into the ship. Blinky get the medical kit. Bruiser, you stand guard." Bruiser saluted as Blinky ran inside the ship. The entire team was nervous, they didn't want a friend to go out like this.


	4. Chapter 5

Crusade to the stars - Chapter 4

**Hello everybody, it's me again! So I tried to do some changes for the last chapter, but my stupid computer kept having problems with the Wi-Fi! So I don't know if it'll change or not, but if it didn't, I'm most likely bound to do so right after I post this chapter. Also, check out my picture for what the crusaders will look like in my story: art/Cmc-in-the-Crusade-to-the-stars-518446264 **

"Is she gonna be okay?" "I need some bandages!" "Hang in there Sweetie Belle." Sweetie Belle groaned. All these foggy voices echoed in her head, it was like she was underwater. She tried to open her eyes but it was all fuzzy. "Ow…" she groaned. Her head hurt like a stampede of buffalo. Once her vision cleared, she recognized the orange ceiling as the one in Bucky's ship, but how… "She's wakin' up!" Sweetie Belle tilted her head towards a door and saw Bucky, Jenny and her friends rushing through. Scootaloo and Sweetie Belle ran to her left while Bucky and Jenny walked around to her right. Sweetie noticed that Scootaloo still had her new wings on as well as her ear piece. "How are you feeling?" she asked. Sweetie Belle groaned, "Like a piano just fell on my head." She rubbed her forehead just under her horn. "What happened?" Jenny held her hoof gently, "Don't you remember? You protected me from Toadborg." Suddenly, memories washed over Sweetie Belle. The invasion, the cyborg, using her magic. She rubbed her head again, "Yeah, I remember." She mumbled. Bucky smiled, "We'll leave you to rest. Feel free to come out when you're ready." He offered. He lead Applebloom and Scootaloo out, but Jenny stayed by her side.

"Sweetie Belle? About what you saw… my magic…" "It's a secret isn't it?" Sweetie smiled lightly. Jenny was shocked, "How did you know?" Sweetie sat up more, "If it wasn't a secret, you would've used it during the battle before Scootaloo made that giant cloud. But instead you used a gun one of the toads dropped." She explained. Jenny smiled, "So, you won't tell anyone?" "Of course not. I'm just glad you're alright." Jenny smiled. "If you want, I can help you with _your_ magic." Sweetie beamed, "Really?! That would be great! Thank you!" The little filly wrapped her hooves around the young lady. Jenny chuckled, "Come on, let's get you back on your hooves." Sweetie nodded, getting out from the covers. It took her a while to stand due to her head spinning, but it soon passed and Sweetie began walking. She came out to Deadeye's station to see Scootaloo talking.

"So there I was, beatin' up toad after toad, wind was rushing past my mane and whistling in my ears. Those toads never stood a chance against my new wings. Thanks again Blinky." The android nodded. "So then, just as the toads surround me, ready to tackle me to the ground, I skyrocketed upwards, flew around them, and sucked them into a tornado that **I** made myself and **destroyed** with ease. Ya know, so there wouldn't be any more chaos than there already was. After that, I stood proud, looked behind me and POW!" she raised on her front hoofs, showing a symbol of an orange, yellow, and purple blaster on her flank, "This baby appeared right before the toads ran off in pure terror." Sweetie Belle smiled and trotted in, "Wow, you got your cutiemark!" she smiled. "Yeah, and so did you." Scootaloo pointed with her hoof. "I did?" Sweetie Belle raised an eyebrow and looked, surprised to see a pink ruby behind a bright green note. "I did! Wow! I have a cutiemark!" she squeaked. "Do you girls know what this means?" Applebloom smiled. "It means we're no longer blank-flanks!" Sweetie Belle cheered. "And we all have our talents!" Scootaloo added. "CUTIEMARK CRUSADERS!" Applebloom raised her hoof. "MISSION ACCOMPLISHED!" The three high-hoofed each other and cheered.

After settling down, Bucky approached them. "Hey girls, follow me. There are some people who want to see you." He said, leading the way to the exit. The three fillies all followed confused. Once everyone was there, Bucky opened the door to reveal cheering crowds. The crowds were held back by metal boarders that lead a way to the steps of the city capital where all the councilmen were standing. The crusaders stepped out and were awestruck. Were they all cheering for them? "Come on girls!" Bucky gestured them to follow him, "You deserve this!" The girls followed, looking around at the many animal people who clapped for and smiled at them. Once they got to the top of the steps, the head councilman stepped forward and shook Bucky's hand. "Bucky O'Hare! We would like to thank you and your team for saving Genus from destruction." He looked down at the fillies, making them recede just a tiny bit. "And as for you three, the councilmen would like to present you with these Medals of Honor!" Another councilman walked up to his side, holding a fancy pillow that bore three bright green medals in the shape of rabbit heads. The head councilman took one and set it around Applebloom's neck, "For the devotion…" Then he did the same for Scootaloo, "bravery…" and finally he did Sweetie Belle, "And compassion you have shown to protect our fair city. Thank you and congratulations." He clapped and soon enough, the rest of the entire city clapped too. The crusaders felt so honored that their entire cheeks went red with blush as they looked over and waved to the crowd. Bucky and his team clapped as well as they took great pride knowing the three were going home with quite a story to tell.

Hours later, Bucky got his team ready for the back to Equestria. Though the girls were nervous about returning, they knew they had to return at some point, so better late than never. After her recovery, Jenny helped Sweetie Belle with the basic magic skills, such as small attacks and levitation which the filly remembered from her lessons with Twilight. But due to the damage Genus took during the invasion, Bucky was needed in the city for a while. Currently, the girls were outside of the ship playing cards, waiting for trip back home. "Hey Sweetie Belle," The girls looked to see Deadeye at the ship's entrance, "I need your help with something." The filly walked up to the ex-space pirate, "What's wrong?" "Nothin' much, but I spoke with Bucky and he said we could be here a while. So how about you help me send a message to your sisters." Sweetie rose an eyebrow, "How would we do that?" Deadeye walked into the ship, "Just come with me, it'll be quick." Sweetie Belle shrugged and went in. Deadeye looked up a ladder to the ship's controls, "We're ready Jenny!" he shouted. Just then, the ship took off into the atmosphere. "I thought we weren't going yet." Sweetie belle said confused. "Oh you don't understand, we ain't leavin', we're just gonna blast some of those asteroids so you can make a picture of you and your friends." Deadeye explained, "Then, the picture will go past Equestria and your sisters will take it as a sign that you're okay." Sweetie Belle thought for a second, "I guess that sounds reasonable." Deadeye walked over to his chair and gripped the maser controls. "Exactly. Now get up here and let's make that picture!" Sweetie smiled and did what she was told. Jenny maneuvered the trio through an asteroid belt where Deadeye blasted the rocks for sweetie belle to use. After a good while, they were done. Jenny steered the ship back to Genus as Sweetie took one last look at her "art" before it carried off to Equestria.

Twilight and her friends gathered on the edge of Ponyville. It was the crack of dawn, yet none of them slept. "Found anything yet?" She asked. The mares all shook their heads. "We've been lookin' all over the place, but we haven't found a clue." Applejack explained. "Oh, I hope they didn't get hurt." Fluttershy squeaked. "I still don't understand. Why would they run away like that?" Twilight asked. "Must've been those ponies who picked on them at school." Rarity noted. Rainbow growled, "Grr, Diamond Tiara. I swear to Celestia, when I get my hooves on her-" "LOOK!" Pinkie interrupted and pointed to the sky. The girls looked to see three familiar faces shimmering in the heavens. The mane six stared at the sky, tears welling in their eyes. "They… They can't be… they couldn't be…" Applejack muttered. Rarity covered her mouth, trying to hold back her wail of sorrow. "All our work… for nothing?" Rainbow asked. After a few more seconds of silence, Twilight finally sighed, "'I'm sorry girls…" she stared back at the sky where the fillies' faces still lingered, "We're too late." After a second of silence, the mares broke down in tears. Rarity's mascara started to smear, Applejack cried into her hat, Rainbow Dash was pounding the ground, Fluttershy whimpered as tears forced themselves out, and Pinkie Pie had no problem crying harder than she had ever cried, causing puddles to form around her. Twilight simply hung her head low in silence. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw the Mayor walking through town. Twilight approached her, "Madame Mayor," she said gaining her attention. "Gather everyone in Ponyville to the gazebo in town center. We have some unfortunate news to tell."

After hours of helping fix Genus, Bucky and his crew were finally able to blast off for Equestria. The team would miss the girls entirely, but they knew it was the right thing to do. Bucky and Jenny were at the main controls in utter silence when Jenny sighed. "Something wrong Jenny?" Bucky asked. "I'm gonna miss them Bucky." She muttered. Bucky nodded, "Yeah I know. We all will. But a rebellion wasn't a place for children. Besides, they have families looking for them back home." Jenny nodded. "Bucky! Jenny! Yee best be comin' down here! There's somethin' ya gotta see!" Deadeye chuckled from down below. Jenny and Bucky looked at each other, set the ship on autopilot, and then headed down to Deadeye's station. Once there, they were greeted by a scene that warmed their hearts straight to the core. The three fillies were fast asleep on the ground, Applebloom curled up with Scootaloo's head on her stomach. Scootaloo was using Applebloom's tail as a blanket. Leaning against Scootaloo's back was Sweetie belle who was snuggling her own tail. Jenny smiled, "Well bless my heart, they must've been exhausted after today." She walked over to the bunch and gently lifted Sweetie Belle into her arms. Deadeye did the same for Scootaloo, and Bucky for Applebloom. "Come on team," he whispered, "let's get them to a proper resting place." The three walked into the room where the crusaders hid in the closet and Deadeye, since he had an extra arm that was free, activated the couch. Jenny set Sweetie Belle over the right arm of the couch furthest away from the door, Deadeye placed Scootaloo upright in the middle against the back, and Bucky gently put Applebloom on the left arm. Jenny set a large, light purple blanket over the bunch, afterwards Scootaloo shifted her position so she was resting her head on Sweetie Belle's back. The three adults sighed happily and quietly left the room. First Jenny, then Deadeye, then-

"_Dad_?" Bucky froze. He turned to Applebloom, still fast asleep. She must've been dreaming. Bucky smiled, she was too innocent, too pure, too perfect. He walked over to the filly, brushed her bangs backed, and kissed her forehead. He smiled, "Sleep tight Applebloom." He whispered. The filly shifted, a small smile forming on her muzzle. Bucky left the room, turning the light off behind him. He then climbed back to the main controls and sighed as he sat in his seat. "You alright Bucky?" Jenny asked. "Those three are real special Jenny." He spoke up, "I hope they won't forget us." "Them? Forget us?" Jenny asked, "Bucky, we helped them get their cutiemarks. There's no way they could ever forget us." She smiled. Bucky turned to her and smiled back, "I suppose you're right. We'll have to visit them once this war is over." Jenny nodded, "I think that's a great idea Buck'."

Meanwhile, within the damaged Toad Mother ship, the Air Marshal was hiding underneath his desk, watching Toad TV. Suddenly, **"AIR MARSHAL!" **Komplex shouted as he appeared on the screen. The Marshal jumped, hitting his head under the table. He crawled out and saw an even bigger screen with the evil lord's face on it, **"Why was I informed your mission was a complete and utter failure?!"** "Um, uh, well, you see…" The air Marshal trembled trying to find his words. Then he remembered what some of his troops reported. Young ponies, one winged, another horned, and the final with neither. They each helped Bucky and his team fight against his armies. Why not stretch the truth a bit? "L-Lord Komplex. I fear Bucky O'Hare has three secret weapons which aided him in the battle!" The screen got closer to the toad, **"Secret weapons?" **the lord asked. "Y-Yes. They seem to be new recruits from another planet. I-I was informed that one took out numerous toads, another put Toadborg in critical condition, and the final fought alongside Bucky himself!" Komplex's face went blank until a heinous smile appeared. **"If Bucky had recruited new allies, they are our enemies. Track down the Righteous Indignation! I want you to find out more about these new recruits." **"How… How do we do that?" Air Marshal shook. **"Steal them from Bucky and take them to a slave factory. That pesky rabbit already lost his planet, why not take his new friends as well?"**


	5. Chapter 6

Crusade to the stars - Chapter 6

**Hey everyone, Dippygamer here! Sorry for not updating, a lot of people like my "Sunset Prime" story and have practically been demanding for new chapters. So yeah, I've had my hands full for a while. So today, this is going to be a pretty long chapter because TheFlyboy44 and I have been discussing the storyline and we've got everything planned out more or less. So let's get to it!**

Bucky and his team were flying back to Equestria to return the Crusaders. They belonged in Equestria, not in a war. Besides, their sisters must've been worried sick about them. The team would miss them though, they are great kids and they helped Genus through a hard time. But just as they were about to go through hyperspace jump, something blasted the Righteous Indignation from behind. The ship shook on the inside, its passengers holding onto whatever they could to keep their balance. "What was that?!" Bucky asked. Jenny looked at a screen on the control panel, five green spots were behind them. "It's the toads! They're trying to shoot us down!" She yelled. Bucky growled, "We can't engage them on our ship. The girls might get hurt!" Just then, a small moon came into view. "Hang on everyone! We're making a detoured landing!" Bucky steered the ship onto the hunk of rock, the toad ships landing not too far from it. Bucky turned to his first mate android, "Blinky, you watch over the girls while we're out." The robot saluted, "Yes sir!" With that, Bucky and his team went out, helmets on to keep oxygen in their system. Guns fired from both ends, red lasers landing blows on the opposing toads.

A large robot, one far too familiar to forget, made its way through Bucky's ship. His large peds left loud crashing sounds to vibrate through the ship. It soon found a room with a couch, on which slept three little fillies. The robot, Toadborg, growled, "So these are Bucky's 'newest weapons'?" Toadborg looked over the sleeping girls, only recognizing the white one. He growled, "Pathetic… but I suppose orders are orders." The cyborg took a giant, brown sack, perfectly large enough to hold his targets. He reached out with one hand and was about to grab his first target when he heard something behind him. "DANGER! DANGER! THE CRUSADERS ARE IN PERIL!" The robot turned to see the tiny android staring at him in fear, "Captain! Report to the rest quarters immediately!" Toadborg growled, "Pipe down Pipsqueak!" He shot a laser and made the android go unconscious.

Just as he did, the three fillies woke up and saw him. They each jumped from the couch and ran to the door screaming. But the Toad cyborg didn't stop. He reached out and grabbed Scootaloo by her new wings. The filly struggled in his grip, "Lemme go!" she shouted. But she was soon stuffed into the large brown bag the borg held. He suddenly felt something hit him from behind. He turned to see the white unicorn firing green aura from her horn at him. He growled and grabbed her as well, soon putting her with the other one. He then looked around for the last one to see her looking at the small robot and nudging him. "Blinky wake up!" She begged. Toadborg chuckled ominously, "I'm afraid you won't be here when he wakes." Applebloom was terrified, so she turned and ran as fast as her hooves could carry her. "Bucky! Jenny! Deadeye! Help!" She cried. But just as she saw the door, a giant metal hand covered her muzzle and picked her up. She was soon stuffed along with her friends, each one struggling to rip the bag. "Let us out!" Scootaloo ordered. "Someone help!" Sweetie Belle cried. "Bucky!" Applebloom shouted. Suddenly, Toadborg put them in an orb which would contain their oxygen. No use of blackmailing Bucky with dead children. He then carried his newly obtained cargo and left the ship she reached a main Toad ship and went in. After reaching the main control room, he called the toads in their comms, "All toad soldiers retreat!" Soon they did as they were told and left, their enemies not knowing what hit them.

Bucky was fighting the enemy, many toads falling relatively fast due to him having such a good team. Just then, every toad turned tail and retreated to their ships. After they flew off, the team all looked at each other then returned to their ship. Deadeye was the first to speak after getting his helmet off. "Hehe! Those Toadies were no match fer us Bucky!" Bruiser chuckled, "Yeah! Dey was weak!" Bucky smiled at their newest win, until he saw Jenny frozen. He walked up to her, "Jenny, you okay?" Jenny was deep in her thoughts, using her magic at an unseeable level, 'I can't sense Sweetie Belle! Or Scootaloo! Or Applebloom!' She suddenly bolted away from the team, running to where the girls were sleeping last. Bucky and the others soon followed her, wondering what was wrong. Suddenly, they all turned to see their first mate android on the floor unconscious. "Oh no." Jenny whispered under her breath. Bruiser picked the little guy up and looked over him as his other teammates ran into the room. They were all greeted with a nightmarish sight. The room was a mess, blankets littered the ground, but no filly was seen. Deadeye ran around the couch looking for any clues or any of the girls. "Scoots? Scootaloo! Where are ya?!" Jenny soon joined him, looking for clues in particular. "Sweetie Belle? Can you hear me?" But as Bucky looked over the sight, a hint of pink caught his eye, he walked up to it and kneeled down, his heart clenching in pain and sadness as he picked up the object. An untied ribbon, bright shade of pink and slightly wrinkled, was on the floor. "Applebloom…" He mumbled.

The team all realized they have been played. The attack was a distraction as someone, or something invaded their ship, knocked out their ally, and took the girls from them. Suddenly, Bucky's sadness was replaced with anger and determination. He stood up, Applebloom's ribbon clutched tightly in his hand, "Jenny! Contact Willy and tell him Blinky need fixing." The cat nodded, "Deadeye, continue looking for any clues about who took the girls." The pirate saluted, "Eye-Eye Bucky!" The rabbit then walked out of the room, "Everyone get ready for a hyperspace jump. We're going to need back up in order to get the girls back." With that, each member took their station and the team headed across the stars to get help in order to save their youngest allies.

Back on Equestria, the princesses had just received a sorrowful letter from Twilight. It appears their efforts to find the missing fillies have been in vain. Celestia was now getting ready to pay her respects by going to Ponyville. Before she was ready to leave however, she heard somepony knock on her room door. She opened it and saw none other than her younger sister. "Celestia. Before we go, I have just received a letter from a distant organization. They say they are known as S.P.A.C.E." Celestia walked to her, "We will read it once we return." She left her room and closed the door, "Right now, we need to support Twilight and her friends in this time of grieving." Luna nodded, "Of course." The two sisters left the castle and spread their wings. Pushing off the ground, the princesses took flight to Ponyville. In the town center, many ponies wore black, most holding their heads low and/or crying. On the gazebo's stand Twilight and the mane six stood, each one showing their sorrow in different ways. Rarity wore the blackest dress she had and wore a veil to hide her smeared mascara. Applejack had her hat off and let her tears roll. Rainbow wasn't even looking at the crowd, hiding her crying face with her wings. Fluttershy was being comforted by Angel Bunny as she cried silently. Even Pinkie Pie, the most cheerful of all ponies, showed grief in her deflated mane and lost joy. Twilight ordered her cards for a speech ad she wiped her eyes one more time.

The crowd of ponies all stood quiet as the unicorn began to speak, "Citizens of Equestria. As you all have heard, three young fillies have run off, thinking they were a burden to our town. And most of you may have gotten word of what had been discovered." Twilight took a deep breath, "I'm afraid the young girls; Applebloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle, also known as the Cutie Mark Crusaders, are no longer with us." Many ponies gasped and/or sobbed as the mare finished her sentence. Three pairs of ponies uncovered pictures of the girls, and many other equines approached them and placed flowers under them. After the ponies went still, Twilight continued. "They believed that our town would be fine without them, but they were wrong. Their lives had so much potential and they had many things to experience in the future. But now, thanks to the stress and doubt they went through, they can never go through life's greatest gift; adventures and experiences."

The ponies all held their head low as she spoke. But before she could continue, a voice arose from the crowd. "Excuse me Twilight." The mare looked down to see the town's teacher, Miss Cheerilee, with one of her students, Twist, next to her. She didn't look happy, nor did she look all that sad. She actually seemed angry. "I believe I found the reason why the Crusaders decided to run off." She spoke, looking at the young filly. She then looked behind her where two familiar fillies; Diamond Tiara and Silver Spoon. The ponies all sent the ponies unamused and/or angry expressions, the main six included. Diamond Tiara laughed nervously, "What? The Crusaders ran off? I didn't know that, did you Silver Spoon?" She acted nonchalantly. "Diamond Tiara started it!" Silver spoon pointed at the other. "What?! It was your birthday!" D.T. argued. "You were the one who told them to leave!" S.S. noted. The two fillies continued to argue, annoying and angering many ponies around them.

"Excuse me." Everypony turned and gasped. Behind the mournful herd was a group of anthropomorphic animals in strange uniforms; a green rabbit, a white cat with long pink hair and a four-armed cuck with an eyepatch. The ponies all panicked, afraid of what these things were. They scattered away from the town hall as the mane six ran towards the strange beings. Twilight readied a spell as the others stared at them hatefully. But then the green rabbit held his hands up, "Easy, we just need to talk to you." Twilight rose an eyebrow, her horn still at the ready. Just then two figures landed aside her. She looked to see Celestia and Luna next to her and her friends. The mare of the sun looked to her student and spoke calmly, "Let him speak Twilight." Twilight was shocked, but nodded, her horn stopped glowing as she did. After gaining the mares' attentions, the rabbit continued, "Do any of you know three fillies? Applebloom, Sweetie Belle and Scootaloo?" The mares froze, their hearts clenching in their chests and their breathes taken from them. Applejack was the first to speak, "Ya'll know my sister?!" She shouted. The rabbit nodded, "Yes." He moved his hand to one of his pockets and took out a familiar pink ribbon. Applejack gasped and ran up to him, taking the piece of fabric from him. "And you must be Applejack." He continued. The mare nodded, "Yeah! Applebloom's mah' sister! But how do ya'll know her and her friends?" The cat with Pink hair stepped forwards, "They stowed away on our ship a couple days ago." She explained calmly. Rarity gasped, "So that's where they've been! Where are they?" The rabbit sighed. "I'm afraid they've been taken aboard our enemy's ship. The girls helped us protect our main city, Genus, and now they're in grave danger."

The mares gasped at the news. But then Rainbow Dash flew forwards, "But… we saw their heads in the clouds. We thought they were gone… for good." Just then the four-armed duck chuckled nervously and rubbed his neck, "Sorry maties. That was supposed to be a message to tell you they were with us before the toads got us on the way here." Twilight set a stern face on, "Well that doesn't matter now. What matters is that we get the girls back and bring them back home." The other mares nodded. But before anything was done, Luna spoke up, holding the letter she had gotten earlier with her magic, "Before you go, are you the ones mentioned in this letter?" Bucky took the letter and read it out loud "To the esteemed rulers of the planet Equestria: The United Animals Council would like to extend an invitation to join the S.P.A.C.E. Alliance in the war against the malevolent Toad Empire. The ambassadors you have sent, Applebloom, Scootaloo, and Sweetie Belle, have certainly shown us that your kind can hold your own against the toads, and we will welcome you with open arms. Please send a reply as soon as possible, and we can work out all the details. Signed: Martin Swineword; head councilman of the United Animals Council." (Thanks for the help TheFlyboy44!) Bucky then held it out for the princess to take back, "Yeah that's us. The girls wanted to help us in our battle against the toad empire so they stepped up and helped us convince the councilmen to possibly expand our ranks with you." Celestia nodded, "That was a great thing they did. But we will have to talk later. Right now, you all have to help the girls." The mares and team nodded. "Come on, our ship is just over here." The mares nodded and followed the team to the ship, Applejack holding tightly to the only piece of her sister she currently had; her pink ribbon. And hopefully soon, she'd have the rest.


End file.
